2021 ADVENTURE VACATION GUIDE CODY YELLOWSTONE ADVENTURE VACATION GUIDE 3 WELCOME TO THE GREAT AMERICAN ADVENTURE. The West isn’t just a direction. It’s not just a mark on a map or a point on a compass. The West is our heritage and our soul. It’s our parents and our grandparents. It’s the explorers and trailblazers and outlaws who came before us. And the proud people who were here before them. It’s the adventurous spirit that forged the American character. It’s wide-open spaces that dare us to dream audacious dreams. And grand mountains that make us feel smaller and bigger all at the same time. It’s a thump in your chest the first time you stand face to face with a buffalo. And a swelling of pride that a place like this still exists. It’s everything great about America. And it still flows through our veins. Some people say it’s vanishing. But we say it never will. It will live as long as there are people who still live by its code and safeguard its wonders. It will live as long as there are places like Yellowstone and towns like Cody, Wyoming. Because we are blood brothers, Yellowstone and Cody. One and the same. This is where the Great American Adventure calls home. And if you listen closely, you can hear it calling you. 4 CODYYELLOWSTONE.ORG CODY YELLOWSTONE ADVENTURE VACATION GUIDE 5 William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody with eight Native American members of the cast of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, HISTORY ca. 1881–1891. Buffalo Bill Center of the West, Cody, Wyoming, USA. MS 6 William F. Cody Collection. P.6.0878 AN ADVENTURE Experience real cowboy culture at MORE THAN the Cody Nite Rodeo, which has been running every night in the summers 120 YEARS IN since 1938. Feel the spirit of the land in nearby Meeteetse, which was a frequent THE MAKING. meeting place among Native Americans. Yet western history is only the beginning This isn’t just anywhere. This is Cody, Wyoming, of Cody’s story. Famous American founded by Buffalo Bill Cody. He tamed the West and abstract expressionist Jackson Pollock @TRIGS_TRAVELS conceived his world-famous Wild West Show from here. was born here. Nearby Heart Mountain This is where mountain men like John Colter and Jim Interpretive Center allows guests to The Buffalo Bill Bridger survived the elements and explored unmapped experience life through the eyes of Center of the West territories. And where Native American tribes, including Japanese Americans who were confined has been called the Smithsonian there during World War II. You can see the Shoshone, Crow, Arapaho and Sioux, flourished. of the West. This is where adventures have always taken place. original mid-century homes ordered from the Sears Roebuck catalog. In all, there Walk in the footsteps of history through charming Cody. are more than 40 sites in and around Visit the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, which has been Cody that are on the National Register of called the Smithsonian of the West. Historic Places. All that’s missing is you. 6 CODYYELLOWSTONE.ORG CODY YELLOWSTONE ADVENTURE VACATION GUIDE 7 YELLOWSTONE TO SOME, YELLOWSTONE IS AMERICA’S FIRST NAT IONA L PA R K. TO US, IT’S OUR BACKYA RD. It’s hard to tell where Cody ends and Yellowstone Or if you prefer a high-mountain ascent into begins. That’s because the journey to Yellowstone Yellowstone, take the Chief Joseph Scenic Byway is part of the experience. The entrance to into the Northeast Entrance of the park. This route Yellowstone’s East Gate is a breathtaking route will take you through soaring mountains. You that will take you along the mighty North Fork can stop for the spectacular view at Dead Indian of the Shoshone River, which charges through the Summit Overlook. And if you like your adventures volcanic Absaroka Range. Be on the lookout for off the beaten path, take a hike through Clarks grizzlies, black bears, deer, elk, moose, bighorn Fork Canyon and see a breathtaking waterfall sheep and bison as you venture toward the park. in a 1,200-foot granite gorge. Two miles before the park, be sure to explore Pahaska Tepee, the original hunting lodge Whichever way you travel from Cody into built by Buffalo Bill in 1904. Yellowstone, it will be an adventure to remember. 8 CODYYELLOWSTONE.ORG CODY YELLOWSTONE ADVENTURE VACATION GUIDE 9 OUTDOOR ADVENTURE When you’re surrounded by majestic HERE, THE mountains, pristine rivers and a sky so clear you can see for miles, it’s easy to be inspired. ADVENTUROUS Cody Yellowstone is a natural playground. Whether you like your adventure on land, in water, by air or dangling from a granite cliff, SPIRIT OF THE there’s something here to captivate you. WEST IS ALIVE You can explore three distinct mountain ranges—the Owl Creek Mountains, the Big AND WELL. Horn Mountains and the Absaroka Range— with 46 peaks above 12,000 feet. Each has miles and miles of hiking and biking trails. If water adventures are more your speed, there’s the Clarks Fork, the Greybull, the Wood, the Big Horn and the North and South Forks of the Shoshone. These rivers are home to world-class fishing for browns, rainbows and cutthroats, and our local guides can take you to places that only the locals know about. These rivers are amusement parks for thrill-seeking kayakers and rafters. Nothing captures the adventure and spirit of the West quite like wild mustangs. Just outside Cody, in the McCullough Peaks Wilderness Area, is one of the last remaining herds of wild horses. Don’t forget your binoculars and camera. @ZTBURTON @M.IMHOFF.PHOTO 10 CODYYELLOWSTONE.ORG CODY YELLOWSTONE ADVENTURE VACATION GUIDE 11 EXCURSIONS ONE ICONIC DAY IN CODY. If you have only one day to visit Cody, here’s how you make it the best day of your trip. As you explore, remember that you are surrounded by history and adventure, because this is where the Wild West lives on. MORNING The collection includes masterpieces from Fredric Wake up early and head Remington and Charles M. downtown. Grab a stiff cup Russell. Don’t miss Edgar of cowboy coffee at one of the Paxson’s famous painting independent coffee roasters of Custer’s Last Stand; or a hearty plate of biscuits this massive work of art and gravy—because you’ve took more than 20 years got a big day ahead of you. to complete. Then venture into the Plains Indian First stop after breakfast: Museum, where you’ll the Buffalo Bill Center of come to understand the the West. You’ll want to start Plains Indian people—their here, because you could culture, traditions, values spend the whole day inside. and history. It’s actually five museums for one admission price. Relive the amazing life and times of Buffalo Bill Cody and the West he loved. His journey took him from Pony Express rider to buffalo hunter to becoming the most famous person in the world—and this adventure @DMBARBERIO is chronicled in the Buffalo Bill Museum. The Whitney Grab a stiff cup of cowboy coffee Western Art Museum is at one of the independent coffee one of the finest western roasters in Cody. art galleries in the country. William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody in show costume with rifle and saddle, ca. 1900. Hand colored by Adolf Sphor, 1958. Buffalo Bill Center of the West, Cody, Wyoming, USA. MS 6 William F. Cody Collection. P.69.1483 12 CODYYELLOWSTONE.ORG CODY YELLOWSTONE ADVENTURE VACATION GUIDE 13 PHOTO: STEVEN SMITH Grab a quick bite for left. Now a steakhouse and they’re bullet holes. Old Wild West Show. You’ll lunch at the Eatery or bar, this establishment was Trail Town was voted “Best be standing right where downtown before heading originally a brothel started Tourist Attraction and world-famous royalty like to the world-renowned by Cassie Waters—widow, Historical Site” by Prince Albert I of Monaco, Cody Firearms Museum, madam and respected True West Magazine. the Prince of Wales and of which has the most businesswoman. course, Buffalo Bill once comprehensive collection Daylight is burning, and stood. Enjoy a cowboy cut of American firearms in there are still some can’t- of Irma’s famous prime rib the world, with more than miss stops. Head to the Cody before you head out to the 10,000 firearms and related Heritage Museum and step next stop. artifacts. Finally, explore back in time to learn about the Draper Natural History the town of Cody, from its Museum, where you’ll have humble beginnings of dirt EVENING an immersive experience streets to the Burlington Finally, if there’s one can’t- into the Greater Yellowstone Railroad coming to town miss activity in Cody, it’s ecology and natural history. and an airport being built. the Cody Nite Rodeo. Since @DORAGARYTRAVEL Then it’s on to the Irma 1938, the toughest cowboys Hotel in the middle of town. and roughest bulls around AFTERNOON Discover what life in the Old West The historic Irma was built have tangled every night Do as the settlers did and was really like in Old Trail Town. by Buffalo Bill to honor throughout the summers. head west. Because you’re his beloved daughter Irma. It’s the perfect way to cap about to feel what life in Now on to Old Trail Town, Venture into the restaurant off a night in Cody—and the Old West was really a collection of relocated and, if the spirit moves it’s why we’re known as the like when you stroll the historic cabins from the you, enjoy a cold one at “Rodeo Capital of the World.” boardwalks through Old 1800s, including Butch the cherrywood bar.